FIGS. 1-2 show a shovel 100 according to the prior art. As shown in FIG. 1, the shovel 100 includes a blade 101, a shank 102, and a handle 103. The blade 2 and the shank 3 are integrally formed from a blank (not shown) consisting of a substantially T-shaped flat plate, which has been cut or stamped from a sheet of metal, such as aluminum. The blank (not shown) is then pressed, stamped, and/or formed to form the blade 101 and the shank 102. After the blade 101 and the shank 102 have been formed, the handle 103 is attached to the shank 102 to form the shovel 100.
The shovel 100 manufactured by the above-described method, however, is disadvantageous in that an edge 104 of the blade 101 that contacts the ground during use is substantially warped, as shown in FIG. 2. Because the edge 104 is warped, the shovel 100 is inefficient and difficult to operate.